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JOSEPH  MERLIN  HODSON 

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Author  of 


“  How  to  Begin  to  Live  Forever 


1) 


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A 


MISSION  EXODUS 


BY 

JOSEPH  MERLIN  HODSON 


* 

I 


New  York 
Saalfield  and  Fitch 
12  Bible  House 


Copyright,  1893 
IBy  Joseph  Merlin  Hodson 


To:  — 


The  Young  People’s  Society  of  Christian 
Endeavor, 

The  Epworth  League, 

The  Westminster  League, 

The  Brotherhood  of  St.  Andrew, 

and  all  kindred  organized  Societies. 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


U  n^HE  Evangelization  of  the  world  in  this 
^  generation  !  " — Why  not  ? 

It  must  be  done.  There  is  inspiration  in 
that  fortunate  rally  sentence.  Elections  are 
won,  and  the  course  of  nations  changed  by 
catch  phrases  and  pithy  epigrams  ;  the  tardy 
work  of  winning  this  world  for  our  patient 
King  should  be  accomplished  by  the  use  of 
every  good  stratagem.  Why  not  a  Mission 
Exodus  as  decided,  well  defined  and  des¬ 
perate  as  the  march  of  the  Children  of  Israel 
to  Canaan  ;  but  carrying  with  it  the  spirit, 


4 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


the  intelligence,  and  the  genius  for  organiza¬ 
tion  of  the  Nineteenth  Century. 

There  was  a  time  when  the  people  of  that 
great  historical  movement  were  caught  in  a 
defile  of  the  mountains.  They  could  not 
climb  the  steep  heights  upon  either  side,  the 
sea  was  before  them,  and  behind  them  the 
fury  of  Pharaoh.  They  were  a  lot  of  poor 
slaves,  who  had  been  whipped  and  dogged  all 
their  life.  They  were  a  flock  of  sheep,  a  hud¬ 
dle  of  two  or  three  million  helpless  men,  worn- 

* 

en  and  children,  apparently  forced  to  their 

»  * 

death,  by  a  disciplined  army  following  in  upon 
them.  They  knew  the  fatal  rush  of  the  fam- 
ous  Egyptian  horses,  the  skill  and  daring  of 
the  world  renowned  charioteers,  the  precision 
•of  the  spearmen  and  bowmen  ;  but  they  had 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


5 


not  sufficient  imagination  to  see  the  faith  road 
that  led  quickly  to  Canaan.  We  now  easily 
see  it.  They  had  a  command  and  a  promise ; 
we  have  a  command,  a  promise,  imagination, 
and  history.  When  God  commands  He  sees. 
What  He  sees  and  commands  is  for  those  who 
believe  in  Him  a  faith  road,  and  it  always 
leads  to  His  Canaan. 

* 

*  * 

Has  not  the  Christian  Church  long  suffered 
the  confusion  of  Moses?  “ Wherefore  criest 
thou  unto  me?  speak  unto  the  Children  of 
Israel  that  they  go  forward.  ”  Do  we  not  ut¬ 
terly  exhaust  ourselves  in  crying  to  God  ?  We 
pray  with  strong  sentences,  and  splendid  rhet- 


6 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


oric.  We  sing  hymns  that  would  do  for  the 
angels,  but  we  are  huddling  in  our  churches 
and  dying.  What  a  force  of  knowledge  is 
dammed  back,  and  held  in  check  among  the 
young  people,  and  how  it  would  bless  and  be 
itself  blest  if  we  could  open  the  channels  and 
let  it  flow  !  There  is  more  than  knowledge  ; 
there  is  tremendous  spiritual  energy,  that 
wastes  as  the  munitions  of  war  disintegrate 
and  weaken  when  held  stored  by  the  armed 
nations  of  the  world.  Why  should  logicians 
not  draw  the  cold,  clear,  but  tragic  conclusion, 
that  the  infinite  sacrifice  of  our  Saviour  in  this 
world  is  largely  wasted  ?  Black  night  yet 
hangs  over  more  than  half  the  religious  sky. 
Sometimes  it  takes  the  form  of  a  thunder 
cloud  shadowing  and  threatening  us  with  its 


A  MISSION  EXODUS.  7 

ominous  pall.  When  the  facts  of  the  heathen 
would  rush  in  upon  the  mind,  our  heart  sinks 
down,  and  there  comes  a  sense  of  so  much  un¬ 
done  that  one  cannot  help  feeling  himself  a 
partner  in  a  great  wrong. 

* 

*  * 

May  the  Lord  match  this  quick  rushing 
age  —  this  age  of  electricity  —  this  age  of  news¬ 
papers  that  have  the  lightning  in  them  —  this 
age  of  inventions  —  this  age  of  all  kinds  of  pos¬ 
sibilities  that  dance  before  the  imagination  like 
fairies  fascinating  us  with  their  promise  of 
coming  into  sight.  May  the  Lord  match  this 
mighty  age,  and  give  the  world  a  man  who  can 
organize  and  lead  it  for  Christ  as  it  is  now  led 


8 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


for  business  and  the  devil  A  man  is  needed 
so  thoroughly  alive  with  zeal  that  society  can¬ 
not  pick  him  up,  make  him  the  fashion  and 
pet  him  into  weakness,  —  a  man  out,  and  out 
aflame  with  one  burning  idea,  who  can  never 
be  caught  and  quenched  — a  man  who  cannot 
be  overcome,  but  will  himself  overcome  in 
Christ,  and  make  the  world  think  GotVs  way. 

* 

*  * 

May  the  Lord  send  the  world  a  Moses, 
meek  but  able  to  lead,  —  a  Peter  the  Hermit, 
half  crazy  if  necessary,  but  able  to  turn  the 
world  into  a  Mission  Crusade, — a  Martin  Lu¬ 
ther,  stubbornly,  immovably  set  in  the  right, 
—  a  John  Wesley  who  so  long  as  present  in 


A  MISSION  NX 0 DUS. 


9 


the  Spirit  didn't  care  where  he  was  in  the  body, 
—  a  Joan  of  Arc,  if  a  woman  will  do, —  a  Gen¬ 
eral  Booth,  if  he  can  do  it,  —  possibly  an  A.  T. 
Pierson  —  anybody  who  has  the  prophets’  eye, 
can  live  on  his  food,  and  is  not  afraid  of  either 
the  kings  of  nations  or  of  finance.  The 
whole  world  needs  the  authority  of  God  and 
His  power  in  a  man.  May  this  little  book  use 
its  opportunity  and  become  a  great  “Want” 
advertisement,  for  a  man  of  gigantic  faith  and 
courage  to  organize  the  world  for  Missions  ! 

* 

*  * 

Wanted  the  sanctified  conception  of  the 
men  who  build  railroads  across  continents,  and 
quickly  belt  the  whole  world  with  a  line  of 
traffic. 


10 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


Wanted ,  not  for  a  denomination  but  for 
Missions,  the  far-seeing  ability  of  the  men  who 
formed  the  Standard  Oil  Trust. 

* 

*  * 

Wanted  the  careful  calculation  of  the  men 
who  can  sit  down  in  an  office  and  lay  out  a 
scheme  by  which  all  lines  of  telegraph  shall  be 
purchased  and  bound  together  ;  so  that  mes¬ 
sages  can  be  sent  for  many  times  less  money 
and  yet  made  to  yield  millions  of  profit  each 
year  to  the  purchaser. 

* 

*  * 

Wanted  an  unflinching  Von  Moltke  to 
methodically  plan  the  details  of  a  campaign 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


ll 


straight  to  the  Paris  of  Satan,  and  a  diplo¬ 
matic  Bismarck  to  furnish  the  resources. 

* 

*  * 

There  is  need  of  some  such  ability  as  this 
laid  upon  God’s  altar,  and  it  must  be  good,  it 
must  be  honest.  Possibly  we  do  not  want  the 
method,  but  we  want  the  conception,  the  dar¬ 
ing  consecrated,  the  ability  to  organize  ana 
lead  sanctified.  We  want  men  accustomed 
to  handle  large  sums  of  money,  and  vast  con¬ 
cerns  willing  to  do  it  for  God,  and  able  to  get 
enthusiasm  and  pleasure  out  of  doing  it  in 

that  way.  ^ 

*  * 

Then  there  may  come  another  1858.  How 
the  world  moved  forward  that  year  !  A  sum 


12 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


mary  has  been  made  of  stupendous  results 
which  cluster  in  that  very  brief  period  making 
a  bright  spot  in  history.  It  is  claimed  that  in 
the  year  1858  access  was  given  for  mission 
purposes  to  more  than  1,000,000,000  people. 

* 

*  * 

In  1858  after  200  years  of  exclusion  a  trea¬ 
ty  was  made  with  Japan  by  Great  Britain 
which  opened  that  country  to  the  Gospel,  and 
the  intervening  history  is  like  a  romance. 

* 

*  * 

In  1858  the  treaty  of  Tientsin  threw  open 
Chinese  ports  and  the  interior,  and  provided 
that  any  subject  of  China  might  embrace  the 
Christian  faith  without  persecution. 


A  MISSION  EXODTJS. 


13 


In  1858  the  interests  of  the  East  India  Com¬ 
pany  were  transferred  to  the  British  Crown  and 
the  hindrance  to  Mission  effort  removed,  mak¬ 
ing  it  possible,  also,  that  Mrs.  Elizabeth  Sale 
should  penetrate  the  zenanas  of  Hindustan, 
and  begin  her  work  among  the  women. 

* 

*  * 

In  1858  changes  took  place  in  Europe  by 
which  the  temporal  power  of  the  Pope  was 
destroyed,  and  Italy  began  to  be  free. 

* 

*  * 

In  1858  David  Livingstone  sailed  a  second 
time  for  Africa  to  complete  his  explorations, 
giving  its  last  continent  to  the  world,  like  a 


14 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


new  copy-book  in  the  hands  of  an  adult 
scholar,  that  its  history  might  be  written  for 
God,  clean  and  beautiful. 

* 

*  * 

In  1858  Benito  Juarez  overthrew  the  mon¬ 
astic  system  in  Mexico,  confiscating  its  estates 
and  revenues,  thus  opening  the  way  for  Gods 
word  to  be  given  to  the  people  of  Central 
America  without  the  embargo  of  papal  re¬ 
striction.  * 

* 

*  * 

The  time  has  come  to  go  forward.  The 
advance  may  be  in  almost  any  direction.  The 

*  “The  Greatest  Work  in  the  World,”  by  Arthur  T.  Pier¬ 
son,  D.D. 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


15 


way  is  open  now.  The  mountain  of  difficult 
languages  and  dialects,  that  was  upon  one  side, 
has  been  levelled  by  the  labors  of  the  various 
Bible  Societies ;  upon  the  other  side,  like  a 
mountain,  was  the  refusal  of  heathen  nations 
to  permit  the  labor  of  missionaries,  and  that 
is  gone.  Then  the  superstition  of  subtle  re¬ 
ligions  was  more  than  a  Red  Sea  in  front. 
But  that  is  now  swept  by  breezes  from  the 
great  ocean  of  Truth.  It  is  ruffled  and 
troubled.  It  rolls  back,  and  the  army  of 
God,  bearing  its  message,  crosses  and  re¬ 
crosses  through  its  very  depth. 

* 

*  * 

Untold  millions  of  money  would  soon  be 
ready  for  Missions  if  the  Christian  Church 


1C 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


should  do  an  extraordinary  thing  worthy  of 
its  faith,  —  if  it  should  turn  to  the  heathen 
world  in  earnest,  and  preach  the  Gospel  to  it 
as  God  wanted  the  Children  of  Israel  to 
march  to  Canaan  trusting  Him  to  lead  them. 
Nothing  else  would  so  quickly  satisfy  the  dis¬ 
content  of  the  world,  seething  for  revolution, 
as  an  act  of  supreme  faith  turning  all  eyes  to 
God,  and  making  plain  our  faith  that  He  is 
about  to  rule  in  mens’  hearts.  Nothing  else 
would  so  certainly  merge  denominations,  as 
a  thing  greater  than  churches.  Nothing  else 
would  so  overtop  the  questions  of  minute 
Biblical  criticism,  and  insignificant  scholarly 
differences,  and  put  them  where  they  belong, 
as  the  practical  application  of  the  great  self- 
evident  truths  of  God’s  word.  Nothing  else 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


17 


would  so  happily  relieve  the  congested  for¬ 
tunes  of  the  world,  as  some  new  wav  of 
spending  money  for  God  that  would  justify 
itself.  Where  can  rich  men  spend  their  ex¬ 
cessive  millions  today  that  it  will  not  pall 
upon  them,  and  satiate  their  true  soul,  almost  as 
sickeningly,  as  the  silly  purchase  of  diamonds? 
It  is  as  difficult  to  find  a  college  that  would 
justify  a  great  gift,  as  it  is  to  find  a  new  in¬ 
vestment  without  forming  a  trust.  Colleges 
and  hospitals  get  the  money,  when  a  man 
must  give  it  away,  because  that  seems  the  best 
place  to  drop  it,  when  the  rich  are  in  a  hurry, 
and  must  put  it  somewhere,  but  colleges  and 
hospitals  are  already  so  in  excess  of  the  real 
demand  for  them,  that  they  enter  into  dignified 
competition  for  students  and  patients.  Gen- 


18 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


erosity  is  becoming  surfeited  at  home.  The 
soul  of  the  world  is  hungry  for  a  great  honest 
opportunity  to  do  good,  that  will  satisfy  itself 
toward  God,  and  use  the  money  it  gets,  and 
the  tremendous  energy  it  develops  in  business. 
It  is  impossible,  for  the  nature  that  has  ac¬ 
quired  magnitude  by  the  control  of  great  en¬ 
terprises,  to  fool  itself  by  puttering.  It  may 
do  nothing  and  die  disappointed,  and  perhaps 
be  lost ;  but  it  will  not  make  a  hypocrite  of 
its  own  brain.  It  knows  when  the  Church  is 
praying  and  crying  into  the  air.  Why  should 
the  enterprise  of  organized  Christianity  mince 
at  a  dark  continent,  or  at  the  fact  that 
1,000,000,000  people  have  never  had  a 
chance,  when  the  business  courage  of  the 
same  men  plans  straight  to  the  issue  in  any- 


A  MISSION  EXOBUS. 


19 


thing  it  wants  to  do?  The  intelligence  and 
push  that  has  created  the  Chicago  Exposition 
would  soon  evangelize  the  world,  if  men  and 
women  could  be  found  who  believe  in  God, 
as  these  people  believe  in  their  city.  They 
have  built  their  beautiful,  wonderful,  new 
“White  City”  in  Jackson  Park,  on  the  shore 
of  Lake  Michigan,  the  quickest  and  most 
astounding  expression  of  enterprise  in  human 
history.  May  someone  in  a  quiet  hour  stand 
aside,  looking  toward  the  blue  dome  that  so 
softly  and  kindly  covers  it  all,  easily  lit  with 
sunlight  by  day,  and  splendidly  sprinkled 
with  stars  by  night,  and  feel  come  in  upon 
him  an  inspiration  of  the  greater  White  City, 
out  of  which  our  Saviour  came,  that  the  Gos¬ 
pel  of  its  life  might  be  preached  in  all  this 


20 


A  MISSION  EX  OB  US. 


world  to  every  creature l  Perhaps  the  faith 
that  conceived,  and  the  energy  that  built  this 
“White  City’’  may  be  latent  there,  and  men 
and  women  shall  be  stirred  by  it  to  like  enter¬ 
prise  for  God. 

* 

*  * 

Everything  may  be  wrong  with  a  nation,  or 
a  world  that  disobeys  God ;  everything  may 
come  right  when  there  is  obedience.  “Go 
ye  into  all  the  world  and  preach  the  Gospel 
to  every  creature  ”  may  be  the  command, 
which  obeyed,  would  open  the  way  for  our 
whole  race  happily,  and  prosperously  into  the 
future.  Disobedience  to  it  may  now  be  cul¬ 
minating,  and  may  set  astray,  and  into  con¬ 
fusion,  strife,  and  war  all  questions  of  govern- 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


21 


ment,  social  order,  and  spiritual  peace.  The 
position  of  our  earth  toward  the  sun  causes 
the  ice  and  snow  during  the  winter  to  creep 
from  the  poles  far  down  into  the  temperate 
zone,  then  comes  the  terrific  war  of  storm  and 
tornado,  by  which,  the  sun  in  the  spring  con¬ 
quers.  We  cannot  turn  the  poles  to  the  sun, 
and  make  the  whole  earth  warm  and  fruitful, 
thus  destroying  in  some  degree  the  cause  of 
storms ;  but  what  we  cannot  do  with  this  vast 
earth  we  can  do  with  its  men  and  women, 
and  especially  its  children.  We  can  turn  their 
soul  to  a  sun  warmer  than  the  natural  sun. 
It  is  possible  to  thaw  the  great  frozen  realm 
of  benighted  human  nature  into  love,  out  of 
which,  in  time,  will  come  intelligence,  good 
government,  fairness,  and  peace. 


22 


A  MISSION  EXODUS . 


The  world  is  now  all  open,  and  nobody 
can  ever  again  close  it.  Not  only  is  it  open 
so  that  people  of  any  nation  may  travel  and 
live  where  they  choose ;  but  it  is  also  open  so 
that  any  man  or*woman  may  think  freely  and 
independently  upon  all  questions.  The  uni¬ 
versal  franchise  has  come,  whether  for  good 
or  ill,  and  no  thrones  can  stay  it,  so  that  gov¬ 
ernment  must  soon  go  into  the  hands  of  that 
class  which  is  most  numerous.  Possibly,  too, 
the  hour  of  God’s  extremity  has  come,  and  the 
neglected  nations  and  people  are  coming  to 
us,  mingling  with  us,  and  taking  for  them¬ 
selves  that  which  in  eighteen  centuries  we 
have  failed  to  give  them.  If  so,  we  are  on  the 
verge  of  new  things,  —  social  storms,  more 
terrific  than  we  have  yet  seen,  —  tornadoes, 


.1  MISSION  EXODUS. 


23 


from  the  conflicting  interests  of  people  differ¬ 
ing  widely,  and  suddenly  brought  together  upon 
terms  of  equal  political  privilege.  If  the  peo¬ 
ple  are  sovereign  they  will  rule  by  their  num¬ 
bers,  in  their  own  way,  so  that  their  royalty 
shall  not  be  shamed,  or  starved.  Love  will 
in  time  prevail,  truth  must  conquer,  light  will 
crowd  away  darkness ;  but  it  will  be  the  evo¬ 
lution  of  truth  forcing  its  way,  it  will  be  dark¬ 
ness  taking  light  for  itself,  error  truth,  hatred 
love,  not  the  mission  of  Jesus  who  came  out 
of  heaven,  and  gave  heaven  to  earth,  intend¬ 
ing  those  who  first  received  it  to  give  it  to 
others.  We  have  not  given  it  to  the  teeming 
untaught  millions,  and  so,  in  trying  to  keep 
it,  have  but  narrowly  and  barrenly  had  it  our¬ 
selves.  What  if  it  be  true  that  we  are  circling 


24 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


about  in  a  sort  of  spiritual  wilderness,  greedi¬ 
ly  developing  it,  building  homes  and  lavish 
churches,  suffering  littleness,  fatigue,  spiritual 
atrophy,  and  death,  when  straight,  blind  obe¬ 
dience,  on  the  basis  of  our  general  faith  in  God, 
would  be  Canaan,  with  wealth  of  soul,  a  self- 
evident  answer  to  scepticism,  a  sign  plainer 
than  sermons,  or  books,  that  we  are  His  peo¬ 
ple,  strong  always  in  Him,  and  enviable  in 
His  blessings !  Certain  it  is  that  light  has 
not  in  the  past  sufficiently  gone  to  darkness. 
It  has  kept  its  light  and  tried  vainly  to  brighten 
it.  Now,  by  emigration,  the  activity  of  the 
press,  freedom  of  speech,  the  organization  of 
labor,  the  overwhelming  vote  of  numbers, 

t 

darkness  is  coming  in  upon  light  and  de¬ 
manding  it.  The  world  is  coming  for  its 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


25 


“pearl  of  great  price.”  It  will  crowd  up 
through  our  civilization,  upsetting  and  over¬ 
turning  our  comfort,  taking  it  from  us,  and 
slowly,  stormily,  disastrously  getting  its  due  — 
its  kingdom  of  heaven  long  established  upon 
earth,  but  never  preached  to  all  the  world. 

* 

*  * 

Is  it  too  late?  No!  Repentance,  the  re¬ 
versal  of  wrong  courses,  looking  with  a  “single 
eye”  to  the  command  of  God,  and  obeying 
it  in  faith  is  always  the  safest  and  best  way 
into  the  future.  We  are  never  wise  enough 
to  make  it  safe  to  go  on  in  any  other  way  than 
by  faith.  Who  can  take  clearly  into  his  mind 
all  the  ten  thousand  great  history  making 


26 


A  MISSION  EXOBUS. 


forces  of  any  period,  and  project  them  into 
the  future,  making  out  of  human  judgment 
alone  a  safe  way?  Who  in  this  age  of  quickly 
moving  currents  of  opinion  —  this  age  of  emo¬ 
tion,  and  deep  sense  of  bitter  wrongs,  can  say 
boldly  enough  which  is  the  way,  unless  he 
speak  in  the  confidence  of  God  s  great  pur¬ 
poses  ?  Obedience  to  God  alone  can  restfully 
assure  us  of  the  intricate  future  looming  up 
from  the  darkness,  and  hoarse  with  voices 
shouting  the  desire  of  untaught  hearts.  Great 
statesmen  have  been  equal  to  lesser  times; 
but  the  world  is  seething  now  and  needs  one 
wise,  strong  government.  It  has  been  said  that 
“the  government  of  the  people  for  the  people 
and  by  the  people  would  be  the  worst  form 
of  government  for  a  great  prison  or  a  lunatic 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


27 


asylum  ;  but  for  good  people  it  is  the  best.” 
The  times  have  come  when  the  world  must  be 
good  to  rule  itself,  when  Jesus  Christ  must  be 
King  and  all  the  people  know  the  meaning  of 
His  just,  generous,  and  loving  sovereignty. 

* 

*  * 

But  an  actual  Mission  Exodus  —  is  it  pos¬ 
sible?  Is  it  not  radical,  irregular,  absurd, 
fanatical?  What  would  it  be  if  the  parent 
source  of  our  civilization  should  start  it  and 
guide  it  ?  What  would  it  be  if  conceived  on 
such  a  scale  as  to  quicken  into  apostolic  vigor 
the  limp  Christian  faith  of  the  world  ?  What 
would  it  be  if  the  spirit  that  hurries  men  to 
die  in  battle  for  their  country  should  be  caught 


28 


A  MISSIOX  EXODUS. 


by  the  majesty  of  a  holy  purpose,  and  filled 
with  a  loving  intention  to  quickly  establish 
the  kingdom  of  heaven  in  all  this  earth  ? 
What  would  it  be  if  God’s  wisdom  in  organi¬ 
zation,  and  genius  in  command  should  find 
His  men,  and  set  them  aflame  with  the  con¬ 
ception  of  a  universal  spiritual  nation  ?  The 
world  always  needs  a  sensation  ;  let  it  have 
one  that  is  good  —  a  sensation  large  enough 
to  justify  itself,  so  decidedly  right  that  it  will 
need  no  answer  to  anybody  but  the  fact  that 
God  is  in  it. 

* 

*  * 

Suppose  the  overcrowded,  intense,  Christ¬ 
ian  world,  now  crying  to  God  in  beautiful  but 
hopeless  repetition,  should  “move  forward ” 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


20 


among  the  people  who  have  not  heard  of 
Christ,  would  they  be  doing  for  God  anything 
more  self-sacrificing  than  many  are  doing  for 
wealth,  sight-seeing,  sport  and  glory  ?  If  even 
vast  armies  of  people  should  offer  to  live  or  die, 
in  order  that  the  Gospel  might  at  once  be  made 
known  everywhere,  would  life  be  for  them  more 
of  a  struggle  than  it  is  now  for  millions  of  good 
people  ?  Are  not  the  masses  of  people  jam¬ 
med  together,  and  trampling  upon  each  other, 
getting  hard  and  bitter  ;  and  all  just  to  live  a 
little  more  narrowly  every  year  ?  What  would 
be  the  effect  if  employment  were  given  among 
the  overcrowded  by  letting  many  go,  by  help¬ 
ing  to  send  them  to  level  up  the  sunken  two- 
thirds  of  the  human  race?  Might  not  the 
machinery  and  business  of  the  world  still  run? 


30 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


These  men  and  women  would  need  to  live 
wherever  they  might  go.  They  would  them¬ 
selves  need  food,  clothing,  and  homes,  and 
every  man,  woman,  and  child  whom  they  might 
start  to  better  things  by  the  truth,  would  soon 
begin  to  eat,  drink,  and  wear  at  greater  cost, 
and  live  in  buildings  requiring  more  labor  than 
a  hut.  What  might  come  about  if  the  great 
Westward  laden  steamers  could  be  laden  East¬ 
ward  ?  Perhaps  this  may  yet  be  found  to  be 
the  solution  of  the  knotty  problems  sweating 
the  brain  of  political  and  social  economists. 
Would  it  not  be  a  worthy  nineteenth  century 
phenomenon,  if  the  civilized,  good  living  part 
of  the  world  should  get  busy,  and  happy 
levelling  up  its  vast  mental  and  spiritual  low¬ 
lands.  Then  *  might  Shakespeare’s  Scripture 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


31 


philosophy  be  practically  realized  in  the  joy 
of  mercy, 

“The  quality  of  mercy  is  not  strained, — 

It  droppeth  as  the  gentle  rain  from  heaven 
Upon  the  place  beneath  ;  it  is  twice  blessed, — 
It  blesseth  him  that  gives,  and  him  that  takes : 
’Tis  mightiest  in  the  mightiest  ;  it  becomes 
The  throned  monarch  better  than  his  crown.” 

* 

*  * 

Where  is  the  hindrance  ?  Not  among  those 
who  should  go  to  the  heathen.  Many  thou¬ 
sands  are  ready,  waiting  to  go.  The  Christian 
young  people  of  this  age  tremble  with  a  desire 
to  do  everything  for  God.  Their  eagerness  and 
helplessness  are  sometimes  nearly  misery.  Let 
the  Churches  become  the  great  federal  nation, 
and  unitedly  call  for  their  hundreds  and  thou- 


32 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


sands  more  and  more,  and  they  will  come. 
The  world  needs  a  great  movement  for  God  —  a 
peaceable  war.  This  would  stir  our  dull  pulses. 
Some  clarion  notes  from  a  Mission  bugle  well 
sounded,  caught  up  and  sent  on,  might  get  a 
rally  that  would  in  a  few  yerrs  make  most  un¬ 
expected  history. 

* 

*  * 

The  hindrance  does  not  lie  in  the  unwill¬ 
ingness  of  people  to  give  money.  The  prop¬ 
hetic  remark  was  recently  made  in  a  hasty 
speech  in  New  York  City  that  “  very  soon  rich 
men  would  hustle  each  other  to  do  good.’" 
Just  now  for  the  most  part  rich  men  are  little 
boys  chasing  butterflies  for  pleasure.  But  cap¬ 
ital  could  learn  that  it  cannot  always  be  a 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


3  3 

minor ;  nor  can  it  be  an  absentee  landlord  very 
much  longer  with  other  people  so  deeply  in 
earnest.  It  cannot  always  go  hunting  clear 
skies  and  balmy  air;  it  cannot  forever  sail  round 
the  world  in  steam  yachts,  and  go  coaching 
through  the  bloom  of  hawthorn  hedges  and 
the  perfume  of  English  roses.  The  capitalist  is 
not  yet  an  angel,  and  cannot  expect  to  float  al¬ 
ways  in  sunshine,  till  he  gets  out  of  this  world, 
thronging  with  weary,  sick,  ignorant  and  heavi¬ 
ly  plodding  human  clay.  If  any  millionaire 
were  to  strip  himself  of  his  surfeit  of  wealth, 
and  quicken  all  the  richer,  purer,  warmer  ac¬ 
tivities  of  his  being  by  dispatching  a  steamer 
load  of  missionaries— by  diverting  to  this  traffic 
the  newest  and  quickest  of  the  ocean  fleet — by 
turning  over  his  luxurious  steam  yacht  to 


34 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


making  Jesus  king,  and  do  it  with  a  clear  eye 
and  strong  faith  he  would  sleep  more  soundly, 
possess  a  healthier  appetite,  get  more  hours  of 
sweet  temper,  find  the  sun  kinder  in  the  heav¬ 
ens,  and  every  star  brighter.  This  world  is 
created,  and  human  nature  is  created  that  Jesus 
Christ  should  be  King  ;  he  who  aids  that 
Sovereignty  starts  thought,  imagination,  and 
emotions  that  emancipate  from  dullness,  and 
futile  things,  giving  instead,  infinite  joyous 

liberty.  * 

*  * 

The  hindrance  lies  in  the  fact  that  the 
church  is  so  busy  with  itself.  It  lies  in  the 
need  of  a  man.  It  lies  in  the  fact  that  we  do 
not  see  that  in  trying  always  to  lift  ourselves 
we  do  not  get  any  higher. 


A  MISSION  EXOBUS. 


35 


A  very  prosperous  church  which  had  set 
itself  to  accomplish  something  for  itself  sue- 
ceeded.  The  question  was  then  asked : 
“What  shall  we  do  next?”  The  suggestion 
was  made:  “Aim  to  be  distinctively  good. ” 
“Make  a  study  of  the  spirit  of  Christ,  and 
seek  to  possess  it  eminently.  ”  ‘  ‘  Pioneer  a 

movement  to  realize  in  the  fullest  possible 
sense  the  experience,  and  the  conditions  of  the 
kingdom  of  heaven  in  a  church,  and  in  a  city.  ’ 
Somebody,  somewhere,  must  aid  a  sample 
church  to  rise  up  in  the  strength  of  the  real 
purpose  of  Christ,  and  gird  itself  to  stay  strong 
in  goodness,  until  without  bill-boards  and 
drums,  people  will  know  of  it,  and  run  to  it. 
There  must  yet  be  the  possibility  of  apostolic 
simplicity  and  joy  —  that  thing,  which,  with 


3G 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


all  their  privation,  was  enough  for  the  early 
Christians,  and  was  still  sweet  when  their  cup 
was  mingled  to  the  brim  with  bitterness. 
There  is  a  paradox  in  human  nature,  the 
meaning  of  which  we  have  not  yet  learned. 
It  is  possible  to  so  try  to  save  our  life  that,  by 
the  very  selfishness  of  the  effort,  we  utterly  lose 
it.  It  is  possible  to  magnanimously  give  it 
away,  and  by  so  doing,  get  it  more  fully  and 
happily  than  it  can  be  had  in  any  other  way. 
At  Christmas  time,  for  about  a  week,  human 
nature  does  seem  to  get  upon  the  right  track, 
bubbling  up  and  rejoicing  in  the  very  joy  of 
its  self-denial.  Can  it  be  that  we  get  the  pleas¬ 
ures  of  Christmas  because  we  blunder  upon  a 
natural  law  of  happiness  deep  seated  in  our 
being?  At  Christmas  time  nearly  everybody 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


37 


reverses  himself,  and  gives  something  to  some¬ 
body  else.  The  pocket-book  is  counted  over 
and  over  again,  and  the  bank  account  is 
strained  to  its  utmost  to  do  all  that  is  in 
our  heart  for  others.  Faces  shine  because  of 
it,  and  people  who  are  never  happy  in  that 
way  at  any  other  time,  get  happy  in  making 
others  happy.  But  how  soon  we  blunder  down 
again  into  the  mean  old  ways  of  selfishness, 
and  suffer  along  through  the  commonplaces 
of  the  year. 

* 

*  * 

At  the  Christmas  time  of  1892,  a  student 
of  human  nature  tried  to  make  a  study  of 
emotions  where  very  rich  people  were  buying 
costly  presents  for  each  other.  He  made  many 


38 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


visits  to  the  famous  establishments  upon  Broad¬ 
way,  and  upon  Fifth  Avenue  in  New  York 
City,  during  the  busy  hours,  to  see  if  any  joy 
could  come  into  the  faces  made  inexpressive, 
hard,  and  leathery  by  mere  money  getting,  and 
its  gross  self-indulgent  use.  The  conclusion 
was :  that  while  it  was  almost  impossible  to 
utterly  destroy  human  nature,  it  could  be 
wonderfully  mummified  about  some  souls. 
With  marvellous  accuracy  has  God  created 
all  through  human  nature  a  system  of  com¬ 
pensation,  by  which  they  who  selfishly  try  to 
save  their  life  all  the  year,  lose  it,  even  at 
Christmas  time.  The  happy  faces  of  last  Christ¬ 
mas,  in  New  York,  were  those  of  the  people  who 
took  time  to  personally  bless  others,  and  the 
purchases  were  not  always  made  in  the  best 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


39 


equipped  places  of  businesss.  There  was 
dancing  delight  in  some  cases  where  a  group 
of  father,  mother,  and  two  or  three  entranced 
children  got  out  together,  to  merely  look  in 
the  windows,  buy  some  warm  clothing  for 
Christmas  presents,  and  a  few  toys  and  candies 
for  Santa  Claus.  Let  anyone  who  wishes  to 
see  some  laws  of  heaven  and  hell,  working 
their  course  on  earth,  study  the  problem  at 
his  next  opportunity.  Selfishness  loses  life ; 
generosity  finds  it. 

* 

*  * 

The  most  striking  phenomenon  of  joy  in 

living  is  to  be  found  among  those  young  peo- 

% 

pie  who  have  reached  the  elevation,  by  which 
they  rapturously  offer  for  the  foreign  mission 


40 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


field,  making  of  themselves  as  complete  a  gift 
to  Christ  as  possible.  They  do  not  lose. 
They  get  a  higher  Christmas  joy.  They  give 
themselves,  and  get  themselves  in  return  many 
fold. 

* 

*  * 

It  is  inconceivable,  that  the  religion  which 
has  all  its  meaning  in  the  life  and  death  of 
Jesus  Christ,  can  prosper,  while  living  out  the 
mistake  of  trying  to  fatten  on  itself.  It  is 
busy  creating  a  market  for  the  most  costly 
sermons  out  of  the  finest  brains.  It  is  press¬ 
ing  for  its  satisfaction  through  artistic  refine¬ 
ment  in  worship,  and  starving  to  spiritual 
death.  It  is  gross  with  wealth  at  home,  lux¬ 
urious  in  its  life  to  obesity,  self-indulgent  in 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


41 


the  emotions  its  seeks  on  Sunday ;  and  no 
decent  attempt  yet  made  to  do  its  first  work. 

* 

*  * 

“Keep  the  money  at  home  —  keep  mis¬ 
sionaries  at  home,  that  they  may  save  our  own 
heathen/’  Do  the  work  at  home  by  all  means. 
Do  it  in  the  best  way.  Do  it  while  doing  the 
other.  Do  it  out  of  the  generosity  and  rich¬ 
ness  of  nature  that  the  other  will  create.  There 
is  no  other  method  that  will  succeed.  We 
shall  never  be  good  enough  to  make  the  world 
about  us  much  better,  until  we  get  better  by 
obedience.  There  is  not  any  power  of  the 
human  intellect,  nor  any  approach  of  man  to 
man,  that  will  very  greatly  change  the  average 
proportion  of  professedly  saved  people  to  the 


42 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


unsaved  among  us,  until  the  conception  of 
the  kingdom  of  God  on  earth  gets  clearer,  and 
has  the  vigor  to  obey  the  first  law  of  its  ex¬ 
istence. 

* 

*  * 

There  must  be  a  great  Exodus  of  the 
Christian  world  in  men,  women,  money,  and 
spirit  to  the  heathen  world.  Nothing,  but  the 
Gospel  wrought  into  the  life  of  the  people,  will 
save  us  from  the  dangerous  ferment  beginning 
in  the  vast  under-section  of  the  human  race, 
and  no  dapper  kid-glove  preaching  will  do  it. 
It  cannot  get  attention.  The  first  work  of  the 
Gospel  must  be  done  with  the  discipline  and 
overwhelming  persistence  of  a  military  move¬ 
ment.  Somebody  must  get  in  earnest.  Who- 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


43 


ever  may  stay  at  home,  and  keep  house  in  the 
Church,  many  must  go  where  Christ  has  al¬ 
ways  pointed  the  way,  saying,  with  a  voice  so 
imperious  that  it  has  never  changed  in  eighteen 
hundred  years  :  “Go  ye  into  all  the  world  and 
preach  the  Gospel  to  every  creature.  ” 

*  * 

We  must  go.  The  Christian  world  must 
give  up  its  sons  and  its  daughters  in  a  vast 
emigration  —  in  soldiers  to  a  peaceable  war  — 
in  a  Mission  Exodus.  The  time  has  quite  come 
to  beat  the  sword  into  a  plowshare,  and  the 
spear  into  a  pruning  hook.  This  age  has  the 
imagination,  the  courage,  and  the  faith,  if  ap¬ 
plied  in  the  right  direction,  to  grasp  the  mighty 


44 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


contents  of  prophesy,  and  hurry  its  fulfilment, 
thus  quickly  bringing  on  its  blessings.  God 
is  willing  that  something  should  be  done  for 
Him  on  a  scale  as  magnificent  as  for  war  or 
international  display.  The  Christian  nations 
are  well  equipped  with  ships  for  destruction, 
and  tremendous  engines  of  war.  Let  them 
find  real  service  in  standing  guard  for  a  few 
years,  before  disarmament,  while  under  the 
flags  of  an  alliance,  triple,  quadruple,  or 
multiplied,  as  it  may  be,  the  work  of  making 
Jesus  King  go  on.  Let  the  Church  of  Christ 
drop  its  differences,  and  bury  them  to  the 
centre  of  the  earth ;  then  unite  to  do  this 
thing,  and  all  the  world  will  be  in  the  move¬ 
ment.  The  world  will  stop  to  see  it  done  if 
it  be  undertaken  worthily.  The  angels  will 


A  MISSION  EXODUS. 


45 


again  throng  the  skies  with  their  song : 
“Glory  to  God  in  the  highest,  and  on  earth 
peace,  good-will  to  men.’'  From  heaven  itself 
mighty,  unseen  forces  will  move  to  help  on 
the  work  of  crowning  Jesus  King  of  Kings. 

May  there  not  be  found  somewhere  a  mart, 
who  will  be  as  great  for  God,  as  Napoleon 
Bonaparte  in  war,  as  statesmen  have  some¬ 
times  been  for  their  country,  as  many  now  are 
for  the  simple  purpose  of  making  money? 


THE  END. 


I 


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